SPOILERS
A couple of weeks ago I ran the Lost Mines adventure for a group at our FLGS for a couple of hours. However, it was a group of 6, and there were some that hadn't played D&D before. It was hard to gauge exactly how the system played out as I did not increase the difficulty for having six players and we only get through the beginning of the Cragmaw hideout.
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to play the Lost Mines with a group of guys with which we have been playing on and off for about 30 years. We haven't played together in a couple of years. I tried playing 4th Edition with them, but that only lasted one session.
In any event, they played the Cleric, Rogue and Wizard, and the group took turns controlling the dex fighter. They really got into the role playing aspects of the game. They enjoyed the new rules and loved how quick the battles were. We got mixed up a few times on some of the technicalities (mostly about what "recharges" after a short rest and what is only once per day, etc..). I also forgot a few times that cunning action is a bonus action and allowed the rogue to dual wield, disengage and then move. Having said that, most of the rules played out real well, and afterwards th guys all said, "that felt like D&D!."
It's interesting to note that even though none of them knew about the rules before we started yesterday, and that they are not forum members and are unaware of the various technical discussions we have been having about options, weapons, etc... they almost immediately realized that the rogue needed to pick up another short sword, the dex fighter's great sword was ditched for better options, etc.
I also notice a huge difference between a game stored get together of random people and a long time adventuring group, and I think, perhaps, this is related to all the gnashing of the teeth and wringing of the hands over the "lethality" of the Lost Mines adventure. That is, the game store groups approached the adventure in a more linear nature and rarely thought "outside of the box." They go from room to room like it was a paint by number. My experienced group, on the other hand, thought out every major decision and avoided a lot of potential deadly encounters by using stealth, deception, and most importantly, reconnaissance. For example, the bugbear was dropped before he even had a chance to swing his weapon. The rogue climbed the chimney and saw the bugbear room. The party then climbed the chimney, got the drop on the bugbear, and took him out after the surprise round and the first round before his initiative came up. They also interrogated Loopy, the goblin, and surprised Glasstaff by going through is secret backdoor. The boxed text indicates his staff is not in his hand, so the dex fighter swatted it out of the way during the surprise round, and a 12 AC Wizard with only 22 hit points had no chance in close quarters with the party. He died before he had a chance to breathe.
One of the things my long time group disliked about 3E were the long combats. They took on a dragon at around 9th level, and the battle took several hours of real time even though it lasted less than ten rounds. However, yesterday they plowed through 15 combat encounters in addition to a ton of role play (especially in Phadalin) and a significant amount of time strategizing. This in about 10 hours. We ended with them clearing out the Redbrand hideout and reaching 3rd level. They have all the sidequests left. They do not know exactly where is Cragmaw castle, nor Wave Echo Cave. They are looking forward to finishing the adventure.
From a DM's perspective, things are fairly simple in this edition as far as running the game. A couple of times they party asked to do things that were not covered in the rules explicitly. I just picked the appropriate ability (or skill, if more relevant) and picked a DC of 10 (fairly easy) 15 (moderate) or 20 (difficult). Worked just fine. Again, once I get more familiar with the rules regarding what is once a day, but only after a short rest, or just a short rest, etc... things will go even more smoothly.
A couple of weeks ago I ran the Lost Mines adventure for a group at our FLGS for a couple of hours. However, it was a group of 6, and there were some that hadn't played D&D before. It was hard to gauge exactly how the system played out as I did not increase the difficulty for having six players and we only get through the beginning of the Cragmaw hideout.
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to play the Lost Mines with a group of guys with which we have been playing on and off for about 30 years. We haven't played together in a couple of years. I tried playing 4th Edition with them, but that only lasted one session.
In any event, they played the Cleric, Rogue and Wizard, and the group took turns controlling the dex fighter. They really got into the role playing aspects of the game. They enjoyed the new rules and loved how quick the battles were. We got mixed up a few times on some of the technicalities (mostly about what "recharges" after a short rest and what is only once per day, etc..). I also forgot a few times that cunning action is a bonus action and allowed the rogue to dual wield, disengage and then move. Having said that, most of the rules played out real well, and afterwards th guys all said, "that felt like D&D!."
It's interesting to note that even though none of them knew about the rules before we started yesterday, and that they are not forum members and are unaware of the various technical discussions we have been having about options, weapons, etc... they almost immediately realized that the rogue needed to pick up another short sword, the dex fighter's great sword was ditched for better options, etc.
I also notice a huge difference between a game stored get together of random people and a long time adventuring group, and I think, perhaps, this is related to all the gnashing of the teeth and wringing of the hands over the "lethality" of the Lost Mines adventure. That is, the game store groups approached the adventure in a more linear nature and rarely thought "outside of the box." They go from room to room like it was a paint by number. My experienced group, on the other hand, thought out every major decision and avoided a lot of potential deadly encounters by using stealth, deception, and most importantly, reconnaissance. For example, the bugbear was dropped before he even had a chance to swing his weapon. The rogue climbed the chimney and saw the bugbear room. The party then climbed the chimney, got the drop on the bugbear, and took him out after the surprise round and the first round before his initiative came up. They also interrogated Loopy, the goblin, and surprised Glasstaff by going through is secret backdoor. The boxed text indicates his staff is not in his hand, so the dex fighter swatted it out of the way during the surprise round, and a 12 AC Wizard with only 22 hit points had no chance in close quarters with the party. He died before he had a chance to breathe.
One of the things my long time group disliked about 3E were the long combats. They took on a dragon at around 9th level, and the battle took several hours of real time even though it lasted less than ten rounds. However, yesterday they plowed through 15 combat encounters in addition to a ton of role play (especially in Phadalin) and a significant amount of time strategizing. This in about 10 hours. We ended with them clearing out the Redbrand hideout and reaching 3rd level. They have all the sidequests left. They do not know exactly where is Cragmaw castle, nor Wave Echo Cave. They are looking forward to finishing the adventure.
From a DM's perspective, things are fairly simple in this edition as far as running the game. A couple of times they party asked to do things that were not covered in the rules explicitly. I just picked the appropriate ability (or skill, if more relevant) and picked a DC of 10 (fairly easy) 15 (moderate) or 20 (difficult). Worked just fine. Again, once I get more familiar with the rules regarding what is once a day, but only after a short rest, or just a short rest, etc... things will go even more smoothly.
Incidentally, while waiting for the other two players to show up at our regular Sunday game (currently playing Powers & Perils system, and modified Rise of the Runelords). So, I had two players. I pulled out my Starter Set and said "Lets give it a go while we're waiting". I think we played about 15 minutes. The dex fighter and the rogue. I downgraded the 4 goblin ambush to 2 goblins. The players, experienced, stopped and the rogue got off the cart to go investigate. Fighting ensued and the 2 goblins went down. That was as far as we got before the other players arrived... During that 20 minutes (5 to choose characters; 15 to play), we all agreed that 5th edition has a distinctly "basic D&D" feel to it. As a DM, I could easily see the 'tone' of the system; fast and furious, rewarding to those who think and don't rush head-on into the situation... Anyway, I think I'll actually buy the core books when they come out. We may actually even play a mini-campaign in it to see how it all plays out (and what rules we want to steal for our regular game...which is typically Dark Dungeons or 1st Edition AD&D)...^_^..Paul L. Ming(Edit: Formating is being ignored for some reason...)
